


Q is for Quacksalver

by Sid



Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: Alphabet Soup Challenge, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-17
Updated: 2014-02-17
Packaged: 2018-01-12 21:16:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 447
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1200982
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sid/pseuds/Sid
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <em>The Tau'ri have a word for Anise. Well, they have several.</em>
</p>
<p>Freya muses about her symbiote's unfortunate tendency to jump the gun.</p>
<p>Written for <a href="http://fignewton.dreamwidth.org/214798.html">Allies Alphabet Soup</a></p>
            </blockquote>





	Q is for Quacksalver

I have never laid any claim to being a scientist. Anise, of course, _is_ a scientist, and a highly trained one at that. Unfortunately she can never seem to remember that her training is entirely in the area of ancient civilizations and cultures. She is constantly dragging me into situations that make me look and feel foolish. Much worse than that, other people have been endangered.

But what can I do about it? If I raise objections, she dismisses them, the same way she dismissed the concerns of the Tau'ri about the tests she wanted to perform using the Atoneek armbands. She kept insisting that Colonel O'Neill and his team would be all right, in spite of their physician's very vocal unease. In a way, Anise was correct. They would have developed antibodies, the armbands would have fallen off, and everyone would have been safe and healthy. _If_ we hadn't convinced them to undertake that mission for us.

I share the blame for that. Their deaths would have been on my hands as much as… After all these years, I still find myself using phrases that are quite silly in our situation. There is only the one pair of hands, and one head for blame to be heaped upon. It does seem unfair that they should be mine, every time.

Anise is ingenious, there is no denying. She surmised the existence of the Zatarc mind-control technology, and, with a good deal of help, built a machine that uses a modified memory recall device to detect the presence of an implanted false memory. But once again, she believed so strongly in her theories that she overlooked other possibilities, such as the Tau'ri instinct to dissemble under certain circumstances. They are so inhibited and bound by pointless rules.

The Tau'ri have a word for Anise. Well, they have several. But the most interesting one I overheard comes from the language called Dutch: quacksalver, meaning 'hawker of salve', with said salve being considered of highly dubious value. They have shortened it over time to simply 'quack', but Doctor Jackson was more than happy to supply me with the complete definition and etymology when I enquired. _More_ than happy.

Anise sulked for quite a while after that, and perhaps it _was_ unkind of me, especially in view of her regard for Doctor Jackson, but I felt it was in everyone's best interests. Perhaps, going forward, she will be more cautious. More _scientific_ with her scientific experiments. Things clearly could not continue as they were. Certainly her intentions are always of the very best – I can vouch for that.

But quite frankly, with such an ally as Anise, who would require enemies?


End file.
